Daily Tip: In Job Interviews, Know Your Audience

If you’re applying for a highly technical role with a prospective employer, and you reach the interview stage, make sure you prepare adequately, and that you know your audience.

If it’s a first-round interview with an HR staffer who doesn’t know the innermost workings of your field, resist the urge to launch into long descriptions full of technical detail; instead, aim for clarity and a good description of how your actions (positively) affected the business.

But if you’re interviewing with a manager or developer who clearly knows his or her stuff, feel free to plunge into the nitty-gritty—provided you maintain that overall focus on clarity and results.

In any case, try to avoid jargon and buzzwords. Show that you’re really thinking about your answers, instead of robotically reciting something memorized. Employers aren’t just on the lookout for your skills; they want to see how you think on your feet and interact with others.